My roasts have been a bit disappointing. The flavors surely are mild. I cupped the last roast to be sure that it wasn't my technique or equipment, and the flavor progressed from a very faint lemon to a slight almond/hazelnut to a bit of a bitterness in the finish (I added 12% Robusta to this roast which is probably where the bitterness come in). The crema is very decent, but for now I'll probably stick with the workshop blends.

Hey- I hope it's ok to intrude here. I never tried the Ophiolite blend as I'm new to roasting but I am pretty hip to the Monkey and the Breccia blend especially. I thinkt the new classic espresso is great but it's almost too normal or conventional for a Sweet Marie's blend.

The treble, eh.. not so sure but it's fun and different. I think he put it out there to make a point.

As far as the Moka Kadir: I'll let you know but I loved the Brazil Cerrado for a SO shot. That is just awesome. Loving the coffee's though.

What I'm taking from this thread is "mild, doesn't drink great up to day for and after day 5"... Not precisely compelling!

I get your point. I think it's really an abstract. I've gotten in the bad habit of brewing 3-4 different types of shots at 1 sitting because I love a lot of flavors and I'm always trying to "tweak" the blends.

One of my favorite shots right now is a straight med-dark Brazil Cerrado. It's very mild and has an exquisite nutty sweet creamy flavor. Lot's of essence. It was the 1st single shot in 10 years my wife could drink straight up. Pure heaven buddy.

About the Cerrado... I must agree.. While it doesnt have much, if any fruit in the shot, DP Cerrado makes a very nice SO espresso. It was actually my first EVER SO shot of espresso. Works very well as blend-base, can handle some different roast levels, and works well straight, or in a regular capp. Try doing a Melange with it.. Half roasted to before 2C starts, half roasted to right before 2C gets rolling. That was a favorite of mine, as it could cut through the milk even on a double capp, but was great straight.

I wish they would bring the ophiolite back. That was such a good blend, but, I suppose "bringing it back" would defeat the whole purpose of the Workshops. Ahh well.

Exactly! It's a beautiful thing. It reminds me of being a kid and just randomly trying things, except this is a bit more controlled. I've gotten a lot of great shots from some Single Origins as well as some really bad ones, but I love getting a grab bag of 10 lbs or different coffees and seeing what works and what doesn't. Different roasts, blends or the likes. I pulled some great great great Yirga Cheffe Shots the other day. I'd say the sample I got was outstanding. Nothing is off limits, and some things I think will be truly great do fall really flat.

JMAN- as far as the ophiolite blend, there's a thread I found here that's got some people trying to replicate it. I think that might be a great experiment in itself.

Dr Evil tries to clone Ophiolite Blend- and other blending experiments

I have roasted another batch of SM New Classic Espresso Blend, tasting it today 3 days post roast. As noted above, first roast I went just to second crack, and while I did have some fine shots about four days in, the overall experience for me was a bit bland.

For this second roast I took the beans into a rolling second crack, and tasting on day three reveals a cup with full bodied dimension and richness, with initial tastes of almond and dusty milk chocolate, with a velvety smooth body and a balance of welcomed bitter tones—a very tasty and smooth, rich experience.

Shots from the New Classic Espresso on day 4 and 5 continued to be rich in body and flavor, chocolate and with enough edge to give the cup dimension and to stand up in milk—I put this into the category of a rich comfort espresso, just what I am looking for most of the time. Getting this blend safely into second crack seems to be the answer, for my taste. I am surprised that the extra roast time makes such a difference with this blend.

Greetings,

Rolling second crack receives my vote. Teriffic blend.

Cliff